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Activism already a factor in races for Pa. high court
Source, Nov. 26, 2006, By Emilie Lounsberry, Inquirer Staff Writer http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/16096971.htm Russell Nigro is wrestling with a dilemma: Should he try to win back a seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after being ousted in a wave of voter anger last year? Or should he skip the political drama and stick with his growing court-mediation business? Nigro, a former Philadelphia trial judge, is weighing a variety of factors - whether the legal community would support him, how to raise money for another costly statewide campaign, and even what to do about bloggers who, he fears, might spread misinformation about him. "It's something I've really got to think through. It's a very, very hard decision for me," said Nigro, 60, a Democrat who was defeated as part of the backlash over the 2005 legislative pay raise. While the dust has barely settled from this month's contentious midterm elections, the political landscape already is being shaped for next year's statewide judicial races - in which two seats on the state's highest court will be up for grabs, and one justice, Thomas Saylor, will be up for retention. The races are expected to be closely watched to see whether the same grassroots activism that cost Nigro his job will be a factor in the yes-or-no retention of Saylor, or in the battle for the two open seats. And the results will have a big impact on the seven-member court, where Republicans hold four of seven seats. "I'm going to do my best to make it an interesting year," said Tim Potts, cofounder of Democracy Rising PA, a citizens group working to improve integrity in state government. Potts said the coming year would present a unique opportunity for court reform - mostly at the state Supreme Court, which has long been regarded as more involved in politics than many public-policy experts would like. "People are going to see the opportunity to make some real change," Potts said. Lynn Marks, executive director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, said she hoped the race got people talking about the role of good judges, as opposed to ballot position, special-interest money, and backroom politics. "The campaign is likely to be very expensive, nasty, and not particularly illuminating about how the candidates would perform as judges," Marks said. Even so, across Pennsylvania, at least eight other judges and lawyers are - like Nigro - pondering whether to run. "I'm looking at the possibility," said Judge Maureen Lally-Green, a Republican from Western Pennsylvania who is one of five state Superior Court judges considering a run. "There's a very strong likelihood that I will," said Common Pleas Court Judge John M. Younge, a Democrat and one of three Philadelphia trial court judges with an eye on running for the appellate court. The jobs are among the best in the legal profession. Justices are paid about $171,800 per year and serve 10-year terms on the court, which has final say over civil and criminal appeals in the state legal system and administers the sprawling judicial system. The vacancies are due to Nigro's defeat, and Justice Sandra Schultz Newman's announcement this month that she intends to step down by the end of the year to join the Philadelphia law firm Cozen O'Connor. Gov. Rendell is expected to appoint someone to fill Newman's seat until after the November election. Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge James J. Fitzgerald III and Commonwealth Court President Judge James G. Colins are among those the governor is said to be considering. Bruce Ledewitz, a law professor at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh who has been a longtime critic of the court's, said he hoped to focus on the need for meaningful change at the nation's oldest appellate court. The court, once a nationally respected institution, has lost its luster and is not known for any special legal expertise, he said. "I can't think of a single area in which the Pennsylvania Supreme Court is looked to nationally on any issue," he said. Ledewitz said he would travel the state when the League of Women Voters sponsored a court-reform tour in the spring based on his 15-point "Platform for Reform of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court." The platform calls for barring private meetings between justices and legislators and getting the court to be more open about committee appointments and administration of the court system. But as veterans of judicial elections know, it's tough to get the public focused on who will be a good judge. But then came the flap about the July 2005 pay raises for lawmakers, judges and others. The raises triggered a storm of grassroots activism that led to the defeat of nearly two dozen legislators and Nigro, who had been seeking another 10-year term. Voters were angered by Justice Ralph Cappy's outspoken support for the pay raise and previous court rulings that allowed lawmakers to accept midterm pay raises - contrary to the state's constitution. The high court's recent ruling on the pay hikes put the issue back in the spotlight. The court ruled that the legislature had violated the state constitution by allowing lawmakers to take the raises at midterm, but the court then reinstated the judiciary raises that the legislature had repealed. "In the past, there's been little interest in judicial elections," Marks said. "But now, with blogs and the Internet and the pay-raise decision, I suspect it's going to be much more interesting." Nigro said he had learned the hard way about the impact of incorrect information that found its way into cyberspace. After his defeat, he said, one of his law clerks told him that a family member had voted against Nigro because she had read on the Internet that Nigro had approved the pay raise. In fact, the pay-raise case had not even reached his court at that time - and Nigro was long gone by the time it did. Nigro said he wondered how to deal with that. "You can't stop people from sending e-mail message," he said. But that's just one of the issues that Nigro will mull into the new year. "There's a lot of nuances to next year's race," he said. Possible Candidates for 2007 PA Courts From Pennsylvania Superior Court: * Maureen Lally-Green * Seamus P. McCaffery * Debra M. Todd * Mary Jane Bowes * Joan Orie Melvin From Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas: * C. Darnell Jones II * Paul P. Panepinto * John M. Younge Links * Judges category:news coverage